'Game of Thrones' finale: What happened to every major character in the show

Katey Psencik, GateHouse Media

Monday

May 20, 2019 at 10:49 AM

"Game of Thrones" ended Sunday night, so it's time to take a look back at HBO's extremely successful series and revisit some of the characters who lived, perished or disappeared throughout the series.

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Let's take a look back at every major character's journey throughout the show and where they ended up in Sunday's finale.

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(Editor's note: We defined "major character" by which actors were listed as main cast in the show's opening credits, going all the way back to season one, so we’ll cover all of them here.)

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SPOILERS ABOUND, PROCEED AT YOUR OWN RISK.

House Stark and its allies:

Eddard "Ned"Stark

Status: Dead

Ned Stark was beheaded in King's Landing by Ser Ilyn Payne in season one, episode nine "Baelor." After the death of King Robert Baratheon, Ned discovered Robert's wife Cersei Lannister's three children were actually fathered by Cersei's twin brother, Jaime. Ned begins to urge Robert's brother Stannis to take the Iron Throne, but he's betrayed by Petyr Baelish, imprisoned for treason and executed on the orders of now-King Joffrey Baratheon.

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Catelyn Stark

Status: Dead

The wife of Ned Stark survives her husband by a few seasons but meets an equally tragic end. After Ned’s death, Catelyn advises her son Robb Stark in his role as King in the North, plots to exchange the captured Jaime Lannister for the release of her two daughters and promises Walder Frey that Robb will marry one of his daughters. However, Robb falls in love and marries, and in retribution for the betrayal, Frey’s men execute Catelyn, Robb, Robb’s wife Talisa and others at the Red Wedding in the Twins in season three, episode nine “The Rains of Castamere.”

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Jon Snow

Status: Alive and banished to the Night’s Watch

Jon Snow, whose real name is Aegon Targaryen, was originally introduced as the bastard son of Ned Stark. Ned claims Jon as his own to protect his sister, Lyanna Stark, who married Rhaegar Targaryen in a secret ceremony before dying while giving birth to baby Jon. Jon spends much of the show as a member of the Night’s Watch, eventually being killed by his men (and brought back to life by Melisandre) until he moves to help Sansa Stark reclaim Winterfell from House Bolton. He is crowned King in the North, then aligns himself with Daenerys Targaryen when he seeks her help defeating the White Walkers, who are quickly moving south and threatening all of Westeros. Jon falls in love with Daenerys before his true parentage is revealed and he discovers Daenerys is his aunt. He eventually kills Daenerys after she massacres thousands of innocent people in King’s Landing in her quest to take the Iron Throne. In the final episode of the show, Jon is banished to the Night’s Watch by his half-brother, King Bran Stark, as punishment for his treason.

Sansa Stark

Status: Alive and serving as Queen in the North

After a traumatic life traveling throughout Westeros, being held hostage by the Cersei Lannister in King’s Landing, used as a pawn by Petyr Baelish, married off to Ramsay Bolton (and later murdering him), Sansa takes back Winterfell in the Battle of the Bastards, becoming Lady of Winterfell. After her brother Bran is named king, she declares the North as an independent kingdom and is crowned Queen in the North.

Arya Stark

Status: Alive and traveling the world

After being held hostage by Cersei Lannister along with her sister, Arya escapes to Braavos and trains as a Faceless Man, becoming a stone-cold assassin and all around skilled murderer, working her way through her list of people to kill (made up of those who have wronged her family). By the end of the show, her list is seemingly complete, her brother Bran sits on the throne, and she sets sail for whatever lands are west of Westeros.

Robb Stark

Status: Dead

Robb Stark betrays Walder Frey by marrying his lover Talisa in secret, going against the promise he’d made to marry one of Frey’s daughters. In an act of revenge, Frey’s men kill Robb, his wife, his unborn child, his mother Catelyn and others at the Red Wedding.

Bran Stark

Status: Alive and serving as King of the Seven Kingdoms (well, now Six Kingdoms)

Bran was pushed out of a tower window by Jaime Lannister early on in the show after Bran caught Jaime and his sister, Cersei, being intimate in an incestuous relationship. He is paralyzed and begins his journey to become the Three-Eyed Raven, storing the history of all of Westeros and beyond. In the final episode of the series, the lords and ladies of Westeros vote Bran to serve as king of the realm.

Theon Greyjoy

Status: Dead

After his father attempts to claim the Iron Throne and fails, Theon becomes Ned Stark’s ward and is raised with the Starks. He pledges his allegiance to Robb Stark but betrays him and sides with his father, invading the North. He captures Winterfell but is betrayed by his own men and taken prisoner by Ramsay Bolton, who tortures him. After Ramsay captures Sansa Stark, Theon helps her escape and retake Winterfell from the Boltons. He returns to the Iron Islands, finding his sister, Yara and aligning himself with Daenerys Targaryen. He heads North to help defeat the White Walkers and is killed by the Night King in episode three of season eight, “The Long Night,” while defending Bran Stark.

Samwell Tarly

Status: Alive and serving King Bran on the small council

After serving on the Night’s Watch, Sam abandons his post to train to be a Maester and cures Jorah Mormont of Grayscale, but later leaves the Citadel to join Jon Snow at Winterfell, saying he’s sick of reading about the achievements of better men. He is one of the first people to discover Jon’s true parentage and joins Jon and the others in the battle against the White Walkers. After Jon kills Daenerys and Bran is crowned king, Sam serves on the small council.

Gilly

Status: Alive

After Samwell Tarly rescues Gilly from her father and husband Craster, she raises her child and travels with Sam. She helps during the Battle of Castle Black and the battle against the Night King. We don’t see Gilly often in the final season, but it’s safe to assume she is raising her children in King’s Landing alongside Sam as he serves on the small council.

Talisa Maegyr (Stark)

Status: Dead

She meets and marries Robb Stark while serving as a healer in the Westerlands. She’s killed at the Red Wedding after Walder Frey learns of Robb Stark’s betrayal.

Tormund Giantsbane

Status: Alive

A Wildling befriended by Jon Snow, Tormund fights alongside Jon at the Battle of Winterfell and eventually settles at the Wall after the war. Jon rejoins him in the final episode and they appear to march north.

Brienne of Tarth

Status: Alive and serving King Bran on the small council

Brienne pledged an oath of fealty to Catelyn Stark, protecting Arya and Sansa Stark throughout their various travels and difficulties. She falls in love with and is knighted by Jaime Lannister, who betrays her when he rides south to be with Cersei Lannister before her death. After Bran Stark is named king, she serves on his small council.

Houses Baratheon and Lannister

Robert Baratheon

Status: Dead

Robert Baratheon, the first king of the Seven Kingdoms in the show, died in season one, episode seven "You Win or You Die." He had previously been wounded by a wild boar after drinking wine given to him by Lancel Lannister on the orders of Cersei Lannister. In other words, he's the one who got us into this whole mess in the first place (well, Ned too).

Stannis Baratheon

Status: Dead

After his brother Robert died, Stannis moved to claim the Iron Throne after discovering Robert’s children are not actually his biological children. He attacks King’s Landing and loses, then moves to the Wall to help the Night’s Watch defend itself from Wildlings. He moves to take Winterfell but loses the battle. Stannis was beheaded by Brienne of Tarth after the Battle of Winterfell in season five, episode 10 “Mother’s Mercy.”

Jaime Lannister

Status: Dead

Jaime Lannister, twin brother and incestuous lover of Cersei Lannister, died in the penultimate episode of the series, "The Bells." When we meet Jaime at the beginning of the series, he's serving in the Kingsguard for Robert Baratheon and later becomes commander of the Lannister armies. He eventually leaves Cersei and flees north to help the allied Starks and Targaryens defeat the White Walkers, but rides south when he discovers Daenerys Targaryen intends to attack and kill Cersei, who sits on the Iron Throne. Jaime and Cersei die in each other's arms when the Red Keep collapses on them during Daenerys' attack in the fifth episode of season eight.

Cersei Lannister

Status: Dead

Cersei Lannister, who sits on the Iron Throne for much of the series, also died in the penultimate episode of the series, "The Bells." Throughout the show, all three of Cersei’s children with her twin brother, Jaime, meet their death. Cersei is defeated by Daenerys Targaryen as she moved to take the throne from Cersei. Cersei dies in her brother’s arms as Daenerys attacks the Red Keep in the second-to-last episode of the series.

Tyrion Lannister

Status: Alive and serving as Hand of the King

Tyrion is initially abducted by Catelyn Stark for crimes he didn’t commit. He becomes Hand of the King to his nephew, Joffrey Baratheon, and helps defeat Stannis Baratheon during the Battle of the Blackwater, after which he is demoted to Master of Coin. He is eventually framed for Joffrey’s murder and found guilty in trial by combat, after which he flees to Essos. He’s taken prisoner by Daenerys Targaryen, with whom he quickly aligns himself, becoming Hand of the Queen. He helps Daenerys plot to take the Iron Throne, later helping her defeat the White Walkers. He commits treason when he tells Varys that Jon Snow is actually the heir to the Iron Throne, then later helps his brother Jaime escape from Daenerys’ imprisonment, for which Daenerys arrests him. He is later freed when Bran is crowned king after Daenerys’ death and named Hand of the King, reforming the small council in the final episode of the show.

Tywin Lannister

Status: Dead

The father of Cersei, Jaime and Tyrion Lannister, Tywin served as Hand of the King for three kings and was the head of House Lannister until Tyrion killed him with a crossbow to save his own life in season four, episode 10 “The Children.”

Joffrey Baratheon

Status: Dead

After Robert Baratheon’s death, Joffrey is named king (despite not being Robert’s biological son). He is betrothed to Sansa Stark, then sentences her father, Ned, to die for treason. He later marries Margaery Tyrell but is poisoned at his own wedding feast by Olenna Tyrell and Petyr Baelish in season four, episode two “The Lion and the Rose.”

Tommen Baratheon

Status: Dead

Tommen becomes king after his brother Joffrey’s death and marries Margaery Tyrell. He kills himself by jumping out of a window in the Red Keep after watching the destruction of the Great Sept of Baelor, where Margaery was killed, in season six, episode 10 “The Winds of Winter.”

Gendry Baratheon

Status: Alive and serving as Lord of Storm’s End

The bastard son of Robert Baratheon, Gendry escapes the massacre of Robert’s bastard sons and goes to join the Night’s Watch before being captured by Tywin Lannister, the Brotherhood Without Banners and Stannis Baratheon. He escapes from Stannis’ clutches and returns to King’s Landing, then joins Daenerys Targaryen’s army to help fight the White Walkers in Winterfell. The last member of the Baratheon bloodline, Daenerys legitimizes Gendry and makes him the head of his house and the Lord of Storm’s End. He proposes marriage to Arya Stark, but she denies him and he is last seen voting to crown Bran Stark king.

House Targaryen and its allies

Daenerys Targaryen

Status: Dead

After her brother Viserys dies early in the show, as well as her husband Khal Drogo, Daenerys moves to claim the throne by accumulating power, armies and advisors in Essos, then moving to invade Westeros and take her place on the throne. She hatches three dragons, liberates Slaver’s Bay, is joined by the Unsullied and the Dothraki, helps to defeat the White Walkers and eventually invades King’s Landing, killing thousands of innocent people during her final battle to claim the throne. She is stabbed and killed by her nephew and lover, Jon Snow, in the final episode of the series, “The Iron Throne.” She never gets a chance to sit on the throne.

Jorah Mormont aligns himself with Daenerys Targaryen during his exile in Essos, swearing his life — and love — to helping her claim the Iron Throne, even after betraying her by giving information to Varys, a spy for King Robert Baratheon. Eventually, Jorah returns to Daenerys’ side and she forgives him. He dies protecting his queen from White Walkers in Winterfell in season eight, episode three “The Long Night.”

Khal Drogo

Status: Dead

A chief of a Dothraki khalasar and the husband of Daenerys Targaryen, Drogo died in a mercy killing after his wife smothered him with a pillow in season one, episode 10. Drogo was injured in a battle and treated by Mirri Maz Duur, but the wound festers and begins to poison him. Daenerys urges Duur to help him with witchcraft, and Drogo lives on in a vegetative state. Daenerys eventually takes pity on him and kills him.

Missandei

Status: Dead

Originally a slave freed by Daenerys Targaryen, Missandei serves as Daenerys’ advisor and friend. She helps Daenerys work toward claiming the Iron Throne until she is captured by Euron Greyjoy and beheaded by Ser Gregor Clegane on the orders Cersei Lannister in season eight, episode four “The Last of the Starks.”

Grey Worm

Status: Alive and heading to Naath with the Unsullied

The commander of the Unsullied, Grey Worm and his army were freed by Daenerys Targaryen, to whom they pledge their allegiance. Grey Worm stays loyal to Daenerys through various battles, eventually helping her sack King’s Landing after witnessing the death of Missandei, who he was in love with. After Daenerys dies and Bran Stark is crowned king, Grey Worm takes the Unsullied away from Westeros and sails to the Isle of Naath, the homeland of Missandei.

Daario Naharis

Status: Alive, probably?

Daario Naharis aligns himself with Daenerys Targaryen and falls in love with her, but stays behind when she sails for Westeros. He might still be in the Bay of Dragons.

Other major characters

Sandor “The Hound” Clegane

Status: Dead

The Hound served as a bodyguard for King Joffrey Baratheon but deserted his post during the Battle of the Blackwater. He spends time traveling with Arya Stark and the Brotherhood Without Banners before joining the armies of Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen to defeat the White Walkers. The Hound then heads to King’s Landing to fulfill his lifelong goal of killing his brother, Gregor Clegane, who is responsible for abusing and maiming The Hound when they were children. The Hound dies when he throws himself off the Red Keep into the flames below, taking his brother with him in the penultimate episode of the series, “The Bells.”

Petyr “Littlefinger” Baelish

Status: Dead

Littlefinger served as Master of Coin under kings Robert and Joffrey Baratheon as well as the owner of brothels in King’s Landing and the operator of a large spy network. He begins to manipulate Sansa Stark to gain influence throughout Westeros, but Sansa eventually learns of his betrayal and his role in the death of her father as well as her aunt and uncle. Sansa, in her role as Lady of Winterfell, sentences Littlefinger to death. Arya Stark slices Littlefinger’s throat in the final episode of season seven, “The Dragon and the Wolf.”

Davos Seaworth

Status: Alive and serving as Master of Ships

Originally serving as Stannis Baratheon’s Hand of the King as he moved to claim the Iron Throne, Davos remains at Castle Black after Stannis is defeated in Winterfell. He becomes one of Jon Snow’s lieutenants, working with House Stark to defeat House Bolton and the White Walkers. After Bran Stark is named king of the realm, he serves as Master of Ships on the small council.

Melisandre

Status: Dead

A Red Priestess often referred to as the “Red Woman,” Melisandre brought Jon Snow back to life after his murder at the hands of the Night’s Watch, serving as an advisor to Jon until he banishes her for her role in helping Stannis Baratheon sacrifice innocent people, including his own young daughter Shireen, in the name of the Lord of Light. She returns to Winterfell when the army of the dead arrives, helping during the Battle of Ice and Fire to defeat the Night King. When the White Walkers are defeated, Melisandre removed the necklace that kept her young and living, and walked into the snow to accept her death in season eight, episode three “The Long Night.”

Jeor Mormont

Status: Dead

The Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch and father of Jorah Mormont, Jeor serves as a mentor to Jon Snow and gifts him Long Claw, his house’s sword. Jeor leads an expedition beyond the Wall to investigate the rumors of White Walkers and is killed at Craster’s Keep in a mutiny. His own men rebelled against him for not standing up to Craster in season three, episode four “And Now His Watch Is Ended.”

Bronn

Status: Alive and serving as Master of Coin

Master deal-maker and lover of money Bronn is introduced when he fights for Tyrion Lannister in his trial by combat and spends much of the show as a sellsword, fighting for whoever can pay him the most money. Eventually, Cersei Lannister enlists him to kill her brothers, but he strikes a deal with them to remain alive and become Lord of Highgarden and Lord Paramount of the Reach, which he remains after Cersei dies and Daenerys is assassinated, serving as Master of Coin for King Bran Stark.

Varys

Status: Dead

Master of Whisperers and leader of all things shady, Varys was a skilled manipulator who swore until his death that his allegiance was to the realm rather to any king or queen. He is executed by Drogon at Daenerys Targaryen’s request after she discovers he committed treason by plotting to spread the news of Jon Snow’s true parentage and claim to the Iron Throne.

Shae

Status: Dead

Shae, a prostitute who became the lover of Tyrion Lannister, later betrays her lover when she falsely suspects he has betrayed her for his wife Sansa Stark. Shae testifies against Tyrion after he is falsely accused of murdering Joffrey Baratheon, then tries to kill him. He kills her in self defense, strangling her with gold chains in season four, episode 10 “The Children.”

Margaery Tyrell

Status: Dead

Margaery became queen after marrying Joffrey Baratheon and later his younger brother Tommen. She was charged with perjury after her support of her brother, Loras Tyrell, and was murdered by Cersei Lannister when the Great Sept of Baelor was destroyed by wildfire in season six, episode 10 “The Winds of Winter.”

Ygritte

Status: Dead

A wildling who becomes Jon Snow’s lover, Ygritte was shot in the back by Olly at the Battle of Castle Black in season four, episode nine “The Watchers on the Wall” as Jon watches her die.

Ramsay Bolton

Status: Dead

The bastard son of Roose Bolton (later legitimized) serves Robb Stark and takes Winterfell after Theon Greyjoy captured it, then betrays House Stark by sacking the castle. He marries and tortures Sansa Stark, who later escapes from his capture. Ramsay murders his entire family and is defeated when Jon Snow retakes Winterfell. Sansa kills Ramsay by unleashing his own dogs on him in season six, episode nine “The Battle of the Bastards.”

Ellaria Sand

Status: Probably dead

The lover of Prince Oberyn Martell of Dorne, Ellaria declares war against House Lannister when Oberyn is killed. Ellaria and the Sand Snakes murder Myrcella Baratheon, Cersei Lannister’s daughter, and is captured by Euron Greyjoy while defending Daenerys Targaryen. Ellaria is sentenced to the dungeons underneath the Red Keep. We never see her again, but if she was still in the dungeons when Daenerys sacked King’s Landing, it’s unlikely she survived.

Jaqen H’ghar

Status: ???

Though his real name is unknown, he is one of the Faceless Men of Braavos who helps train Arya Stark. We haven’t seen him since Arya left Braavos, but he could be wearing anybody’s face, so who really knows?

The High Sparrow

Status: Dead

The leader of the religious group the Sparrows, he was killed by Cersei Lannister when the Great Sept of Baelor was destroyed by wildfire in “The Winds of Winter.”

Roose Bolton

Status: Dead

The former head of House Bolton, Roose was killed by his son Ramsay in season six, episode two “Home.”